• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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• v.30 no.1
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• pp.40-46
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• 2016

Many medicinal plants have been used for the treatment of edema, jaundice, and gonorrhea in traditional Oriental medicine. This screening study was designed to search the positive inotropic effects of herbal extracts in beating rabbit atria. Aquarius extracts of twenty six herbs were examined in atrial mechanical dynamics such as pulse pressure and stroke volume and atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP), one of the main hormones involved in the regulation of the body fluid and blood pressure homeostasis in perfused beating rabbit atria. Sophora flavescens Ait., Rheum officinale Baill., Acorus gramineus Sol., Chelidonium majus L., Pulsatilla koreana Nakai., Reynoutria japonica Houtt., Euphorbia lathyris L., Pyrrosia lingua (Thunb.) Farwell, Poncirus trifoliata Rafin., Anemarrhena asphodeloides Bunge, Kochia scoparia Schrad. significantly increased stroke volume and pulse pressure. However, those herbal extracts were not induced ANP secretion. We clarified the eleven herbal extracts for the positive inotropic effect independent of ANP secretion in beating rabbit atria. Thus these results provide a beneficial data for the treatment of the impairment of body fluid and blood pressure in traditional Oriental medicine.

• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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• v.24 no.4
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• pp.592-597
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• 2010

Cinnamomi Ramulus is one of the medicinal plants that have been used to improve various diseases caused by insufficient blood circulation. This study was performed for the investigation of vasodilation efficacy ethanol extract of Cinnamomi Ramulus (CR). CR exhibited vascular relaxation against phenylephrine (PE, $10^{-6}M$)-, KCl- and NaF-induced contraction in rat thoracic aorta. In addition, its relaxation was endothelium-independent. Treatment of potassium channel blockers such as gilbenclamide (Gli, $10^{-5}M$), tetraethylammonium (TEA, 1 mM) and 4-aminopyridine (4-AP, 0.2 mM) did not effect on the relaxation of CR. The relaxant effects were also not inhibited by pre-treatment of rat aorta with L-NAME ($10^{-4}M$), methylene blue ($10^{-5}M$), indomethacin ($10^{-5}M$), and atropine ($10^{-6}M$). However, nifedipine ($10^{-5}M$), L-type $Ca^{2+}$ channel blocker, in part attenuated the relaxation of CR ($0.2\;mg/m{\ell}$), but SK&F96365 ($3{\times}10^{-5}M$), receptor activated $Ca^{2+}$ channel blocker and 2-APB ($10^{-4}M$), store operated $Ca^{2+}$ channel blocker did not affact dilation of CR. These findings suggest that the endothelium-independent relaxation effect of CR is partly related with inhibition of $Ca^{2+}$ influx via voltage dependent $Ca^{2+}$ channel.

• Korean Journal of Pharmacognosy
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• v.28 no.4
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• pp.264-270
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• 1997

This Study was carried out develop antitumor effect of the n-butanol soluble of fraction of Perilla frutescens on human skin melanoma cells. The antitumor activity of various fractions obtained form n-butanol soluble fraction of Perilla frutescens was evaluated in human skin melanoma cells. The antitumor activity of the n-butanol soluble fraction in human skin melanoma cells was evaluated by 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyl-2H-tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay, neutral red (NR) assay and sulforhordamine B protein (SRB) assay of colorimetic assay methods. The light microscopic study was carried out to observe morphological changes of cultured human skin melanoma cells. These results were obtained follows; The fractions 5 and 6 of the n-butanol soluble fraction of P frutescens were shown significant antitumor activities. The number of human skin melanoma cells were decreased and tend to form cell cluster by treatment with actions 5 and 7 of the n-butanol soluble fraction of P. frutescens. The fraction 6 of the the n-butanol soluble fraction showed the highest antitumor activity on P. frutescens. These results suggest that the fraction 6 of the n-butanol soluble fraction of P. frutescens may be a valuable choice for the studies on the treatment of human skin tumors.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.27 no.12
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• pp.1500-1506
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• 2017

Plants are reservoirs of naturally occurring chemical compounds and of structurally diverse bioactive molecules. The aim of this investigation was to screen for the presence of phytochemicals responsible for the lipolysis activity in mulberry (Morus alba) leaves, which are important in traditional Asian medicinal plants. Powdered mulberry leaves were extracted with hexane, ethyl acetate, and methanol. Daucosterol was isolated from the EtOAc extract of mulberry leaves, and its structure was elucidated by NMR spectral analyses. The NMR assignments for the compound were determined using $^1H$, $^{13}C$, DEPT, COSY, HSQC, and HMBC NMR spectral data. Daucosterol showed a concentration-dependent lipolysis activity that may impart medicinal properties that can be exploited by medical practitioners for the treatment of various diseases. However, further studies should be conducted to elucidate additional mechanisms of daucosterol.

• Korean Journal of Oriental Medicine
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• v.16 no.3
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• pp.167-173
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• 2010

Objects : Glycine max Merr. (black bean), Triticum aestivum L. (wheat) and Oryza sativa L. (rice bran) have been widely used for treatment of relaxion of smooth muscle, gastrointestinal hemorrhage and alopecia in Korean Traditional Medicine. In this research, we examined the effect of the extracts, obtained from EtOH extracts of 3 kinds of traditional plants, on hair growing activity of the DP6 and C3H10T1 cell and physical properties. Materials and Methods : On the basis of previous studies, three traditional plants were selected and we extracted them with ethanol. We evaluated their hairy dermal papillar cell proliferation activity and mouse mesenchymal stem cell in vitro model. Also, 3 herbal extracts were added to the normal shampoo formulation in ranges of 0.1% and we validated tensile properties and physical changes using aged hair. In this research, we compared the tensile strength, shine and color appearance between the hair (general formulation) and the hair after applying shampoo with natural extracts. To analyze the luster and color image, we use the SAMBA hardware and software made by Bossa Nova Technologies. Results : In the comparative test for tensile characteristic between the hair treated general formulation(control) and the hair applying special formulation including 3 kinds of extracts, tensile distance and energy of the latter are larger than control on average. The shine and color appearance were also increased after using shampoo including natural extracts(shine : 10.9%, color appearance: 24.12%). We observed the enhancement of hair growth activity in the DP6 and C3H10T1 cell. Especially black bean extracts had the most powerful effect in the dermal papillar cell proliferation. Conclusion : These experiments suggest that extracts of Glycine max Merr. (black bean), Triticum aestivum L. (wheat) and Oryza sativa L. (rice bran) stimulate the hair growth activity and can improve physical activities of aged hair. Shampoo product, which contains 3 kinds of natural extracts, would be used for the treatment for aged hair.

• Journal of Forest and Environmental Science
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• v.30 no.2
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• pp.243-252
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• 2014

Forest tree species usually takes for long periods to be harvested and cultivated but spearmints are a good model system for woody plant because of reducing and shortening cultivation time. Spearmints are good model plants (Mentha species) for research about terpenoids production and industrial essential oil manufacture. Isopentenyl pyrophosphate isomerase (Iso) and limonene synthase (Limo) are the key enzymes of terpenoid biosynthesis pathway. Transgenic and wild spearmints (Mentha spicata, MS) were cultured in vitro and assessed for the essential oil contents. The content of essential oil of transgenic spearmint also was enhanced slightly depending on the target terpenoid genes. In an attempt to increase productivity of terpenoids further, salt and fungal elicitation strategy was adopted on transgenic Mentha spicata. The salt (800 mM NaCl) as abiotic and two fungi (Botrytis cinerea and Glomerella cingulata) as biotic were used for elicitors. In the absence of salt stress four terpenoids were detected from the spearmint extracts, all of them being monoterpenes. On the other hand, the transgenic (MSIso) extracts contained eleven terpenoids (10 monoterpenes and 1 phenylpropene) while transgenic (MSLimo) extracts contained seven monoterpenes. After 3 days of fungal infection, the resistance indices further increased to 4.38, 3.89 and 2.04 for wild type, MSIso and MSLimo, respectively. The salt and fungal elicitators proved beneficial towards modifying both the terpenoids profile and improvement in the composition of essential oil. These results have important applications for the large-scale production of essential oils and forest biotechnology with respect to spearmint.

• Natural Product Sciences
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• v.11 no.1
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• pp.16-21
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• 2005

Nitric Oxide (NO), derived from L-arginine, is produced by two types (constitutive and inducible) of nitric oxide synthase (NOS: cNOS and iNOS). The NO produced in large amounts by the iNOS is known to be responsible for the vasodilation and hypotension observed in septic shock, cancer metastasis and inflammation. The inhibitors of iNOS, thus, may be useful candidates for the treatment of inflammatory diseases accompanied by the overproduction of NO. We prepared alcoholic extracts of herbal drugs which have been used for the treatment of inflammation in oriental medicine. We have screened the inhibitory activity of NO production in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-activated macrophages after the treatment of these extracts. Among 82 kinds of extracts of herbal drugs, 35 extracts showed the potent inhibitory activity of NO production above 50% at the concentration of $50\;{\mu}g/mL$. The inhibitory activities of NO production were also evaluated for several solvent fractions at two different concentrations. Especially, hexane and EtOAc fractions of Alpinia officinarum, Angelica gigas, Ostericum koreanum, Saussurea lappa, Torilis japonica, and hexane fractions of Agrimonia pilosa, Machilus thunbergii, Hydrangea serrata, Magnolia obovata, Prunella vulgaris, Tussilago farfara, and EtOAC fractions of Perilla frutescence showed a significant activity at 10 and/or $25\;{\mu}g/mL$. In Western blot analysis, the hexane fractions ($5\;{\mu}g/mL$) of Magnolia obovata and Saussurea lappa, and EtOAc fractions ($20\;{\mu}g/mL$) of Hydrangea Serrata, Perilla frutescence and Torilis japonica inhibited the expression of iNOS protein in LPS-activated macrophages. These plants may be promising candidates for the study of the activity-guided purification of active compounds and might be useful for the treatment of inflammatory diseases and endotoxemia accompanying overproduction of NO.

• Korean Journal of Plant Resources
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• v.25 no.6
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• pp.731-738
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• 2012

Dandelion has been widely utilized for medicinal and edible purposes. This research was conducted to evaluate the effect of supplemental LED (light-emitting diode) light on germination, growth characteristics and anthocyanin content of dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) seedling using LED blue (460 nm), red (660 nm, R), blue + red (B:R=6:4) and fluorescent lamp light treatment. By LED illumination to T. officinale seed germination speed was delayed, and germination rate was the highest in the fluorescent light. The growth characteristics (plant height, number of leaves, root length and fresh weight) were greatly influenced by supplemental LED light compared with control treatment, and the growth promotion was the most effective in the red LED illumination. After 60 days of red and mixed LED light treatments, anthocyanin content of dandelion plants was significantly changed. The anthocyanin content was increased by 12~19 mg/100 g under the red LED and the mixed light conditions compared with the control and the blue LED. Results indicate that illumination with red and mix LEDs, compared with other light treatments, is beneficial for promotion of growth and anthocyanin content in dandelion.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.26 no.7
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• pp.1038-1046
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• 2013

With the aim of investigating the differences in the quality traits between Korean native chicken (Hanhyup, KNC) and broilers commonly used in two different traditional Korean cuisines, the chemical composition and sensory properties of breast and thigh meat from the two chicken strains were assessed. KNC for baeksuk (chicken meat braised in soup with various Oriental medicinal plants; KNL), KNC for samgyetang (similar to baeksuk but young chickens and ginseng are used; KNS), broiler for baeksuk (BL), and broiler for samgyetang (BS) were used as treatments in this study. KNL and KNS contained higher protein but lower fat content than BL and BS. The $L^*$ values of breast and thigh meat, but not the $a^*$ values, were significantly different between KNS and BS, whereas significant differences in both values were observed between KNL and BL. Compared to the other three types of chickens, KNS contained the highest total and insoluble collagen content, and KNL and BL showed higher inosine-5'-monophosphate content in their meat. Overall, KNL and KNS contributed darker, less tender meat with higher protein and less fat content together with more n-3 fatty acids, as opposed to their counterparts used for the same cuisines. Based on the results of the sensory analysis, even though there are some differences in physiochemical traits, different chicken sources do not differ in overall sensory quality. This information can help consumers to understand better the meat available for their preferred traditional cuisines.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.35 no.7
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• pp.1956-1964
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• 2014

To provide the scientific corroboration of the traditional uses of Akebia quinata (Thunb.) Decne., a detailed analytical examination of A. quinata stems was carried out using a reversed-phase high performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC) method coupled to photodiode array detector (PDA) for the simultaneous determination of four phenolic substances; cuneataside D (1), 2-(3,4-dihydroxyphenyl)ethyl-O-${\beta}$-D-glucopyranoside (2), 3-caffeoylquinic acid (3) and calceolarioside B (4). Particular attention was focused on the main compound, 3-caffeoylquinic acid (3), which has a range of biological functions. In addition, 2-(3,4-dihydroxyphenyl)ethyl-O-${\beta}$-D-glucopyranoside (2) was considered as a discernible marker of A. quinata from its easy confuse plants. The contents of compounds 2 and 3 ranged from 0.72 to 2.68 mg/g and from 1.66 to 5.64 mg/g, respectively. The validation data indicated that this HPLC/PDA assay was used successfully to quantify the four phenolic compounds in A. quinata from different locations using relatively simple conditions and procedures. The pattern-recognition analysis data from 53 samples classified them into two groups, allowing discrimination between A. quinata and comparable herbs. The results suggest that the established HPLC/PDA method is suitable for quantitation and pattern-recognition analyses for a quality evaluation of this medicinal herb.